A green, lush place with ancient creatures

The Highlands of Santa Cruz offer a beautifully lush contrast to the beaches and arid lowlands. With our Naturalist Guide you will visit the twin craters of Los Gemelos that are actually sink holes surrounded by Scalesia forest, meet the celebrated Giant Galapagos Tortoise roaming in its natural habitat and explore cavernous underground Lava Tunnels.

Itinerary

El Chato Tortoise Reserve is near Santa Rosa, approx 19km from Puerto Ayora. This is one of the only places where you can observe the ancient creatures up close in the wild. They look old, they smell old and they even sound old when they suck in their necks and heads and let out a hiss of air, like an old leather cushion. The reserve is also a great place to see the short eared owls, Darwin’s finches, yellow warblers and paint billed crakes. After you return to the current century you will be taken to the lava tubes, where you can walk more than 1km underground. They were formed by the solidifying of the outside skin of molten lava flow. When the lava flow ceased, the molten lava inside the flow kept moving, emptying out of the solidified skin thus leaving tunnels. Lastly a visit to Las Gemelos, the twin craters that are actually sink holes surrounded by Scalesia forest. Vermillion flycatchers and often seen here, as well as short eared owls on occasion. It is a beautiful place to take in the greenery of Galapagos and walk along the small paths around the craters to spot some of the bird life. At the conclusion of the tour you will be transported back to Puerto Ayora.

Travel time: the tour is approximately 3 hours.

Includes: entry fees, transport & naturalist guide

Interested?

Please contact us for rates. Seasonal discounts and group discounts can apply.